Top Ten Tips to Become a Morning Runner

Many people choose become a morning runner because it gets their day off to a great start right away. It gives them the boost of energy that they need to get through the workday without feeling exhausted. Being a morning runner allows you to get your workout out of the way so that it`s not something that you have to worry about after you get home from work.

Many people give up on their workouts because they are too tired after work to hit the gym. By going for your run in the morning it`s already over with and out of the way. But what if you`re not a morning person, how do you motivate yourself to get out of bed and run instead of hitting the snooze button? Keep reading for the top ten tips to become a morning runner.

Top Ten Tips to Become a Morning Runner

Below are the top ten tips to getting through that morning run and becoming a morning runner. Who knows, you might end up loving it.

1. Don’t Overdo Your First Time
It would be a mistake to go for a long run your first time out. Your body needs to adjust to running in the morning when your muscles are used to sleeping. You may feel lethargic and your muscles a little stiff the first time out. Start off with 20 minutes and work your way up from there.

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2. Use Iced Coffee as Fuel
A lot of people depend on some form of pre-workout to get them through a workout, especially in the morning where their energy may feel depleted before they even get going. A great tip is to brew yourself some iced coffee the night before so it’s ready to use as fuel before you go for your run. All you need is coarse coffee grounds, a French press and a fridge.

3. Use the RISE App
This is a great alarm app that allows you to choose the most motivating song of your choice and then it uses that song as your alarm for the morning. How could you not be more motivated to go on that run?

4. Try High Intensity Running
You can save time on your workout by going for a high intensity run instead of just a standard run. Your run doesn’t necessary have too be a long one as long as the intensity is higher. You can burn more fat by using a high intensity workout anyways so it might be a better option for you. All you need is 30 minutes and you’re done.

5. Do Morning Routines the Night Before
If you usually have a morning routine that gets in the way of your ability to go out for a run, then do these tasks the night before. Whether it’s cleaning up the dinner dishes, or packing lunches, these things can be taken care of the night before to allow yourself a free morning for your run.

6. Have a Snack
Many people have a hard time running in the morning on an empty stomach, it easily becomes a deterrent to workout in the morning in general. There is an easy fix to that however, if you make a healthy snack of oats before you run. You can eat half of them before your run and the rest when you return. It will give you enough energy to finish the run without making yourself feel full. Just place oats in an overnight container with milk, dried fruit, sweetener and some spices and then leave it in the fridge until the morning.

7. Reward Yourself
Decide on the best breakfast you could ever have post-run and then only have it when you get up in the morning for your run. Rewards work so well. It’s important to have something to look forward to in order to reach your goals. When you do well it’s okay to treat yourself.

8. Get Lots of Sleep
Running in the morning becomes a lot easier when you are well rested. It doesn’t mean you have to go to bed early either, it just depends on what you are doing before bed to affect your sleep. It’s a known fact that you shouldn’t be looking at any screens two hours before bed. That may be hard to believe especially if you are someone that watches TV before bed. But by looking at a screen before bed it messes up your internal clock, making it harder to go to sleep when you finally get into bed. So put your devices away earlier in the evening and do something else before bed like read a book.

9. Don’t Drink Coffee Before Bed
This is another habit that is sure to doom your sleeping habits. Caffeine will just mess up with your sleep for the simple fact it’s made to give you energy not put you to sleep. So don’t drink caffeine in the evening at all and you will find that going to sleep will come a lot easier for you.

10. Stimulate Your Senses in the Morning
If you want to get stimulated naturally in the morning but you don’t get a lot of light shining through your window, then there’s an app that can help you out. An app called The Morning Sun literally makes your phone screen light up incrementally during the hours leading up to when you will awake for your alarm. The app wakes you up in just the same way as the sun would, slowly brightening up your screen as morning approaches. It even does it with a comforting alarm tone. Now how cool is that?

These are all great ways in which you can become a morning runner. They will help you rise and get out there to achieve your goals before your day even starts. It will not only help you keep your goals on track but running first thing in the morning will actually give you more energy to get you through the rest of your day. Before you know it, your body will be used to the morning runs and you will start wondering why you didn’t do it earlier.

Are you a morning runner? Share your running tips with us in the comments below.